FIU program prepares underprivileged students for college

GEAR UP program at Florida International University trains and prepares South Miami-Dade youth for college and beyond.

BY SOPHIA PINO
Special to The Miami Herald

Tweens and teenagers usually don't volunteer to go to summer school -- unless they're go-getters like the middle and high school students who sign up for the GEAR UP program at Florida International University.

For them, summer school is a chance to get ahead.

GEAR UP, an acronym for ''Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs'' is a supplemental education program designed to motivate and prepare students at four South Miami-Dade schools for a college education.

''They show you how to deal with things in the future, like applying for college or getting a job. They also show you computer skills and help you get ready for the SAT,'' said Maira Gaspar, 16, who is entering her junior year at South Dade Senior High.

Gaspar has been attending the summer program for the past three years and is considering a career in criminal justice or computer engineering.

Other students come from Homestead Middle School, Leisure City K-8 and ASPIRA South Middle School.

''The program really gives students a background in many subjects that they might not be exposed to during the year,'' said Christine Aiken, a GEAR UP instructor.

''It opens up a lot of possibilities they might otherwise have not considered,'' added Aiken, who teaches at Paul Bell Middle School in the Sweetwater area.

The summer program is hosted by Florida International University at its Center for Diversity in Engineering. But all the courses are taught by teachers in Miami-Dade Public Schools.

The curriculum's core classes are language arts, reading, mathematics, science and technology.

Students can create a business plan while taking a course in computer technology. Or they can learn math that will help them for a career in engineering. Or they can soak up tips about getting a job.

The program is designed for incoming seventh- through 10th-graders.

GEAR UP is an open program, meaning that there are no requirements or examinations to be accepted. Students just have to sign up. The program also sends graduate students from FIU to tutor and assist students during the school year.

''You learn things here that teachers in regular school just don't have time to explain,'' said Adria Clark, 12, who will be entering seventh grade at Homestead Middle School this fall.

According to Beatriz Oria, a program specialist with GEAR UP at FIU, students are also taught life skills, such as workplace conduct, coping strategies and interviewing.

The program also donates laptops and school supplies to schools and individual students, as well as offering college counseling to parents and students.

In its summer session on the university's engineering campus GEAR UP serves between 160 and 180 students.

During the school year, the number goes up to about 1,400 students from Homestead Middle, Leisure City K-8, ASPIRA South Middle and South Dade High.

''At the national level, there is a great need to increase the number of people that are interested in working in the areas engineering, sciences and technology,'' Oria said. ``The best way to do that is to expose students to these fields at an early age so that they have a strong foundation in those skill sets.

''South Dade is an area where there are a tremendous amount of students who are first generation American and whose families may not be aware of the opportunities available to their children,'' she added. ``It is our goal to provide these children with a strong background so that they can succeed.''